Pacific leaders have taken a step towards changing how outside partners engage with the region.
This comes as New Zealand will be in the spotlight when it hosts the next Leaders’ Forum in 2027.
Leaders meeting in Palau last week agreed to place Forum partners into two partnership streams, with the new system due to be implemented from 2027 and reviewed after its first year.
The change could reshape how dialogue partners and other outside countries engage with Pacific leaders, with the Forum saying regional priorities, leadership and voice must remain at the centre.
Palau President Surangel Whipps Jr, who chaired this year’s Forum, had set out the principle at the opening of the meeting, saying Pacific partners were welcome but should not determine the region’s direction.
“Our partners are welcome to sail with us but they do not choose our destination,” Whipps said
Vaovasamanaia Winston Peters at Pacific leaders Forum. Photo/PMN News/Thomas Tarurongo Wynne
Foreign Minister Vaovasamanai Winston Peters echoed that position when discussing the Forum’s handling of outside pressure.
“We weren’t going to have outsiders telling what we insiders needed to discuss,” he told William Terite on Pacific Mornings.
It will also put New Zealand in a key position as the next host of the Pacific Leaders’ Forum.
Watch Winston Peters’ full interview below.
Peters said the shift was part of a broader move towards a more growth-focused and practical Forum, similar in some ways to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) model.
The Forum’s Deputy Secretary Esala Nayasi said the new structure would distinguish between strategic and sectoral partners, with only strategic partners engaging directly with Forum leaders. Sectoral partners would instead engage at ministerial level.
Peters pointed to agreements reached in Palau on fuel security and economic development as signs the Pacific Islands Forum was already moving in that direction.
But the bigger test will come next year when New Zealand hosts the Leaders’ Forum and the new partnership structure is expected to be put into operation.
The Forum’s closing communique says leaders “reaffirmed the 2025 Leaders Policy on Partnerships” and agreed on the placement of partners in two partnership streams, subject to a review after one year.
They also said the new system must be “genuine, durable, and accountable” and strengthen “Pacific leadership, voice, and engagement.”
Palau President Surangel Whipps Jr, Solomons Foreign Minister Rick Houinepwela, New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Luxon. Photo/PMN News/Thomas Tarurongo Wynne
For New Zealand, that means the 2027 meeting will not simply be another leaders’ gathering.
It will be an early test of whether the new structure can give Pacific countries greater control over how outside partners engage with the region.
Peters defended New Zealand’s decision to help bring Pacific leaders to this year’s Forum in Palau, saying the cost was money well spent.
“The outcome was fantastic,” he said.
New Zealand helped facilitate travel for about a dozen Pacific leaders through Auckland and Brisbane, with 18 countries attending the Forum, up from eight when Palau last hosted eight years ago.
Peters said New Zealand’s delegation held 28 meetings over two and a half days, covering climate finance, security and economic cooperation.
Pacific Leaders forum closing Tonga Prime Minister Lord Fatafehi Fakafanua and New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon. Photo/PMN News/Thomas Tarurongo Wynne
Leaders also agreed to a US$500 million (NZ$850.84 million) Pacific Resilience Facility, with Peters saying New Zealand had helped raise more than US$173m (NZ$294.39m) towards the target.
Leaders also issued a joint statement opposing a second round of ballistic missile launches over the Pacific.
Peters said some of the most difficult discussions were around the wording of the statement particularly whether China should be named.
The forum’s final communiquē did not name China despite tensions around Taiwan’s attendance and reports of pressure from Beijing.
Peters said several Pacific delegations, including New Zealand, resisted outside attempts to shape the agenda.
He said Pacific countries had pushed back against attempts by outside countries to influence their discussions, resolutions and decisions.
Watch PMN News Political Reporter Thomas Tarurongo Wynne’s roundup below.
The communiquē still named the activity being protested without naming the country behind it.
Fuel security was another major issue with Peters saying discussions with the United States following the Strait of Hormuz crisis resulted in a US$60m (NZ$102.10m) for regional fuel resilience.
Peters said the same principle would apply when New Zealand hosts the Forum next year.
“We will lay out who’s invited and who’s not invited, but we won’t be told by outsiders who our guest list will be,” he said. “If we want the help of other countries, then we need to engage with them with respect both ways.”
But as Aotearoa prepares to host in 2027, the biggest question may be closer to home: how the partnership system will work in practice and whether it delivers the stronger Pacific voice leaders have called for.
The Forum Troika is expected to work through the new arrangement over the coming year ahead of the New Zealand-hosted meeting.
